Day 302

         We don’t have to read this week’s passages to realize the strong opposition to God present in the world today.  The hatred for and rejection of Jesus Christ and the Gospel is evident in so many places.  This week’s readings concern the last hours of Jesus’ life on earth.  One of the aspects that stand out and what we will focus on has to do with the opposition to Christ, and not solely directed to Christ but also His disciples.

Matthew 26:1-5,14-30; Mark 14:1-2,10-26; Luke 22:1-30; John 13:18-30.  “Betrayal”

         “All our experience with history should teach us, when we look back, how badly human wisdom is betrayed when it relies on itself.” –Martin Luther
         That’s an interesting quote as you reflect on today’s passage.  God is betrayed when we rely solely on our human wisdom.  The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were guilty of this, which, in essence, became a double betrayal.  The first betrayal was against the life of Jesus Christ.  We learn that the, “Leading priests and teachers of religious law were still looking for an opportunity to capture Jesus secretly and put Him to death.”  The tool they found to accomplish their purpose was a greedy Judas, a follower of Christ.  A truly betrayal can only come from one close to you.
         The second betrayal came in the form of rejecting God.  As the religious leaders planned and schemed, they also grew more self-reliant and independent from God.  Through experience the Apostle Paul gave wise counsel, “we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely only on God, who raises the dead.” (2 Cor. 1:9) 

General Questions for each day:
Summarize the day’s Bible passage in your own words.
What thoughts, actions, attitudes or beliefs are addressed in the passage?
How is the Holy Spirit leading you to apply this passage to your life today?